1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to software tools and services for testing and monitoring the operation of web-based and other server systems.
2. Description of the Related Art
A variety of commercially-available systems exist for allowing companies to monitor the post-deployment performance of their web sites and other server systems. For example, Mercury Interactive Corporation, the assignee of the present application, operates a hosted service that allows customers to monitor their respective web sites as seen by end users in various geographic locations. Web site and server monitoring systems are also available as products that may be installed and operated “in house.” Various tools and services also exist for allowing web site operators to load-test and functionality-test their applications and server systems prior to deployment.
One problem with existing monitoring systems is that the web site performance data they collect and report typically fails to reveal the specific application components that are the sources of slow response times seen by end users. Without such information, web site operators and developers may have to resort to tedious experimentation to identify the root causes of application-related performance problems. The present invention addresses this problem.